


Lego House

by themoviegeekstrikesback



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-16
Updated: 2013-01-16
Packaged: 2017-11-25 18:08:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/641588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themoviegeekstrikesback/pseuds/themoviegeekstrikesback
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A fluff AU in which Swan Queen is established, and Emma and Snow have returned with Regina’s help. Set way after "Queen of Hearts," but ignores both "The Cricket Game" and "The Outsider". For musical accompaniment, here’s a link to The Beach Boys’ “Don’t Worry Baby” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9E1by7PocE: and to Ed Sheeran’s “Lego House”, which you can listen to here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4BLVznuWnU. Unbeta’d, so all mistakes are mine.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lego House

_Meet at our spot._

Emma grinned at her phone and rushed down the stairs, struggling to fit an arm into the sleeve of her jacket. Henry looked up from his place at the dining table, while Snow walked away from the pot she was stirring. It wasn’t until Emma got to the dining room that she looked up, and two of them were looking at her quizzically. She straightened her shoulders and the jacket miraculously fell into place.

“Where are you going?” Henry asked, and he set down his mug a little clumsily, sloshing cocoa on the table. “Can I come too?”

Emma ruffled his hair. “Maybe next time, kid. This is a solo mission.”

Snow wiped her hands on a towel and reached for her phone. “Let me call your father. I do not feel safe with you going anywhere at all, especially with Rumplestiltskin on the loose.”

“I’m not going to go meet with Rumple—Mr. Gold,” Emma said, shaking her head. “And the next time I do, I need someone with magic with me.”

Snow cocked her head. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying, I really need to get going, because I’m going to be late,” Emma said, offering a helpful smile. She kissed Henry on the forehead. “You be good for your grandmother. It won’t be that long.”

Henry looked up at Snow and tried hard not to chuckle. “Okay.”

Emma gave them a wave, before getting her coat near the door, and walking out into the chilly night. A few minutes later, they heard the sputtering of the Bug, and Emma driving off.

Snow turned to Henry with a stern look. “Finish your cocoa, Henry Mills, or it will be timeout for you.” She turned her head back to the door, slightly worried.

Henry only ducked his head and took another sip of the cocoa.

 

She didn’t remember the drive taking this long before. Storybrooke was as small as a town as it can get, and she was always just five, ten, or fifteen minutes away from most of it. When she spotted her destination, she parked, and reached for her lantern and a picnic mat. She turned on the lantern and walked towards the castle. She blushed at the memory of learning about it, at the sheer embarrassment of a false accusation. And yet—that memory seemed to have been from another lifetime entirely.

The leaves and twigs broke beneath her feet, and she looked around, but there were no signs of the other woman. She chanced a look at her watch. It was a quarter past seven, and in an hour or so, it would get darker. She needed to get home before nine, otherwise, Snow would become suspicious. David wouldn’t be too far behind.  

“Regina?” Emma called out, going around the castle. “Where are you?”

A figure emerged from the trees. “Right here.”

Emma jumped a bit at the voice and turned around. “God, you scared me.”

“Not God. Just Regina.”

She couldn’t help the grin that was now on her face. Regina was wearing the same gray turtleneck and scarf that she was wearing the day of the storm, and there was a flicker of a smile playing on her lips.

“Hey.”

Regina regarded her, and nodded slightly. “Miss Swan.”

“Oh, we’re back to ‘Miss Swan’ now, huh? C’mere.”

Regina walked a couple of steps, and Emma extended her arm to tug on Regina’s hand, and wrap the other woman in her arms. Once they were embracing, Emma felt Regina’s arms tighten, and she brushed her lips on Regina’s forehead. “Hey, I’m here,” Emma breathed out. “I’m here. I’m real.”

She could see the tears welling in Regina’s eyes. “Yes, you are.”

“I missed you, too.” She tilted Regina’s chin up, and when she saw the expression on the brunette’s face, her forehead wrinkled in worry. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

Regina only shook her head.

Emma pulled back a bit, and wiped the lone tear that escaped from Regina’s eyes. “You know, you could have done all your crying when we got back,” she chuckled. “I guess you’re making up for it now.”

Regina’s arms moved to her neck, as she pulled Emma in for a kiss. “Let’s start all over, shall we?”

She smiled and wrapped her arms around Regina’s waist. “Sounds good to me. Hey, Regina.”

“Hello, Emma.”

Their foreheads touched as they continued to kiss. Emma lifted Regina, as the other woman wrapped her legs around Emma’s waist, and the two of them moved towards the orange tower of Henry’s castle. Giggles escaped from both of them, before Emma set Regina down gently and leaned into her. Regina pressed a kiss into her neck and Emma could feel the grin on her skin. Before long, Regina’s arms were wrapped around her neck once more, and the two of them reveled in the comfort of having each other.

“I missed you,” Regina said, as her lips brushed Emma’s cheek. “It’s been too long.”

“I know.” She gave the brunette her most apologetic smile. “We’ve just been putting out fires lately. No wraiths, but everyone’s been a mess. Just old fights. It’s kind of crazy how so many people who hate each other can be cramped in such a small place.”

“Distractions. I’m sure he’s behind all of it.”

“While I don’t doubt that at all,” Emma replied. “I didn’t want to talk about him. I was hoping we could talk about, you know, us.”

 “I understand. But I did not think you were ready to explain to everyone,” Regina said quietly, before looking away. “Especially to your mother.”

Emma brushed the brunette’s chin with her thumb. “Were you?”

“Henry was the only person who needed to know. As for everyone else, they can just find out.”

She could only nod. “We should tell him soon,” Emma said, as Regina tucked in a lock of hair from her forehead. “We can’t do this whole meeting in secret thing anymore. Snow’s already getting paranoid—she wanted Dad to come with me tonight. Actually, I’m getting paranoid too.”

She touched Regina’s cheek, before looking at the ground. “If something happened to you—I’m not going be able to forgive myself.”

Regina held her hand in one of her own, before looking into Emma’s eyes as she kissed it. “Then, let’s just make sure I can handle it.”

“I know you can take care of yourself,” Emma said, her forehead wrinkling in frustration. “It’s just him, not knowing when he’ll move or if he already has something planned. I need you to be safe, always.”

Regina’s face scrunched up in confusion. “I’m not sure I understand your meaning, dear.”

“It would be in everyone’s best interests if Henry and I lived with you, or if you lived with us.” Emma replied. “I don’t care what the arrangement is, I just don’t see this weekly thing working.”

The brunette’s lips were still in a frown, but her eyes had already lit up. “Are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure!” Emma said, grinning. She put her hands on both sides of Regina’s head and leaned down to her ear. “What do you think? Could you live with a Sheriff of a lawless town and her precious, lovable little boy?”

Regina could only smile and kiss her.

She’d been thinking of the same thing herself, but her history with both Snow and Charming has been fraught with more pain than what she has had and now has with Emma. Somehow, she couldn’t see the two royals she threatened with death and misery to be as kind or as lenient.

When they broke off, Regina looked to her side and saw the lantern and the picnic mat. Emma put an arm around her as they walked side by side to pick up the items. “I know you haven’t done much camping, but I thought we could take the playground for a spin, and then just look at the stars.”

Regina cocked her head, as her eyes held a mischievous glint. “I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re suggesting, Miss Swan.”

Emma rolled her eyes at the other woman, before putting the lantern at the center of the playground. “I’m not doing it on the playground you built for our son.”

Regina clutched a hand to her chest. “Heavens, I didn’t know you were a prude, Miss Swan.”

She pursed her lips playfully. “Knock it off, or so help me--”

Regina crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. “So help you what?”

“Or so help me, you’re gonna get pushed on that slide.”

Regina did not like that look in Emma’s eyes. It reminded her of how Henry promised to go to bed the night she brought home a gallon of cookie dough ice cream. She found him a couple of hours later, chocolate chips dotting his lips, a bowl and a spoon in his hand. Genetics had never meant so much more to her than this moment. “You wouldn’t dare.”

Emma wiggled both her eyebrows. “I’m not half the town. I would.”

Regina took a step back, and then another, and when she tried to make a move to her right, Emma started to chase her. She was laughing as she ran after the other woman, who was soon climbing up the orange tower and crawling through the red tube. Regina chanced a look back and saw that she didn’t lose the tail. Emma was struggling to fit through the red tube and Regina couldn’t hold it in—she laughed at the sight as Emma huffed, trying to get one leg free.

“Damn it.”

“Language, Miss Swan.” Regina said, before covering her mouth to stifle a laugh.

“Course, this would be funny to you.” Emma said, wriggling.

She finally made it through and joined Regina at the tube, letting out a little laugh as the two of them tried to fit in. Regina was looking at her with something akin to tenderness. She’d only seen flashes of light in Regina—most of which was directed at Henry. Every time some of it was directed at her, she hoped that she could keep it there, because she was certain that this—their son, their life, their love—would be all she would want for the rest of her life.

A hand squeezed her shoulder, and she looked down. “I’m afraid we can’t fit in here.”

“We’ll make it work.”

“I know you fancy yourself as a knight, Emma, but when I had this castle designed, it was meant for children,” Regina looked up at her, before down on herself. “Clearly we’re past that stage of development.”

“Scoot, then. You’re the one who’s underneath me.” Emma replied saucily.

“Classy.”

Regina pushed herself backward and moved a bit, finding herself face first on the slide. Emma scrambled behind her, and Regina could already see the impish grin on her lips. “Don’t get any ideas.”

“I told you—you’re going down that slide. C’mon, Your Majesty.”

Regina saw the slide and the ground below, and in her mind’s eye, she could see her landing. Emma saw the wince before Regina turned back to her. “I’ve never been on a slide before.”

Emma finally wiggled her way out of the red tube and sat near her. “But Henry—“

“I’d look out for him, but he always wanted to go by himself.”

“Huh,” Emma ran her fingers through her hair, before scratching her head. “Guess there are no slides in Fairytale Land. Swings, too. All the more reason why you should go, then.”

Regina moved tentatively, moving around so that her legs were now outstretched on the slide. “Together?”

Emma wrapped her arms around Regina’s chest. “Together.”

She didn’t need to do much, really. She just nudged both of them forward, and soon Regina was letting out a little whoop of enjoyment as the two of them went down on the slide. Regina leapt up and pulled Emma to her. She wrapped her arms around Regina’s waist and kissed her cheek.

There was an adorable pout on Regina’s face. “That was too short.”

“We are too big for that slide,” Emma said, chuckling. “You wanna go again?”

“I’m going!”

She was surprised. This time, she let Regina chase her up the ladder leading to the slide, and let the brunette push her, before following suit. Emma found that she had many tricks to show her, starting with going down the slide on her feet. She went back up again, and threw her socks and shoes below, before standing on the slide, looking like a surfer, and letting gravity do its work. She jumped off the slide, landing in front of her queen, before giving Regina a little bow.

The brunette let out a little laugh. “Charming.”

She took Regina’s scarf, untied the knot, and whipped her butt with it. Regina yelped, and pushed Emma on the chest, as the blonde made to chase her up the ladder going up to the slide. “Your turn.”

Regina looked down from the rungs, before kicking off Emma, who was trying to tickle her feet. “Emma! Stop it!”

“Go, or your feet will never have the end of it!”

Regina shook her off one last time, laughing at Emma’s antics, and climbed up to the slide, as Emma got out and stepped back to watch her.

She crossed her arms, as Regina got into position. “Face first? Very daring.”

Regina did go face first, letting out another squeal as she got to the bottom. She helped her up and smiled at Regina, as they both brushed off her turtleneck. She laughed at Regina trying to go after every bit of dust on her shirt. “You wanna go up again?”

A cool breeze started blowing in, and when the two of them looked up, the stars were shining brightly overhead. Regina smiled at the night sky before looking back at her. “I think it’s time for the next item on the agenda.”

Emma wrapped an arm around her, and the two of them walked towards the picnic mat.

 

Adults were weird, Henry decided, as he watched his grandmother pace back and forth on the living room of her apartment. Emma had been gone for a while, and now David (or James, he still couldn’t decide what to call him, so it was ‘Gramps’ for now) was in the apartment as well. He was calling up some of their neighbors, trying to work out where Emma went and with whom. As Snow paced, her expression became more troubled, and Henry was worried that Emma went to Mr. Gold after all.

“She didn’t tell you where she was going, right?” Snow asked him. “She didn’t mention anything?“

“No,” Henry said, worrying his bottom lip. “Do you think she went to see him?”

“I hope not, Henry,” She replied. “If she’s trying to protect you or us from Cora, he might be able to do it, but I don’t like the idea of her owing _that man_ a favor.”

“You really think she’s here?”

“I won’t put it past her. She can do anything.”

Henry now had an idea of where else Emma had gone, but he didn’t know how to tell them. “Gram--”

“Yes, that’s her car,” David said, as Snow stopped pacing and looked at him for information. He held up a hand and nodded at whatever the other person was saying. “What? By herself? Are you sure?”

“Where is she?” Snow and Henry both asked.

“Thank you. I appreciate your help,” David added, before hanging up. “She went to the woods.”

“Red said she’d be here in a bit,“ Snow said, as she reached for her jacket. “Henry, you can’t go out of the house until we find Emma. Red will stay with you until we bring her back. Do you understand?”

“Why can’t I come with you?”

“Look, kid, if it’s as bad as it is, we need to know you’re safe,” David explained. He made his way to Henry’s seat at the table and knelt in front of him. “We need to make sure your mom’s fine. Okay?”

He shrugged at them. “Okay.”

The door flew open and Red was there, a helpful smile on her face. “Hey, Snow. Charming.”

Snow bussed her on the cheek and tilted her head towards Henry. “We really appreciate the help, Red. We won’t be long. We’ll let you know if we need help.”

Red nodded and walked over to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “It’s the least I can do.”

Snow and David gave him a wave. He smiled slightly and watched them leave.

 

The two of them were lying on the picnic mat, using logs as pillows, as they looked up at the sky. She had an arm around Regina, and the brunette’s face was tucked in her chest. She pointed up at the sky and started tracing patterns, stopping at her favorite. She traced it as slowly as she could, and then retreated her hand. Regina noticed the action and reached for it. Her brows furrowed in concern.  

“Is something wrong?”

Emma shook her head and pulled her closer. “No, I just remembered one of my foster homes. One of the older kids, she taught me the constellations.”

“Which one was your favorite?”

“That one,” She replied, tracing the constellation again. “It’s simple, really. Three Sisters. A diagonal line, if you want to be technical about it. What was your favorite?”

“Sagitarrius.”

Emma only nodded. There was a long stretch of silence, in which Emma counted the stars, and Regina allowed a few of her favorite memories of Daniel to surface. Stolen kisses between lunch and tea, riding in the fields, picking apples from her favorite tree. Regina closed her eyes, and when she opened them once more, she let the wind take away her memories again. “Why was it your favorite?”

“What?”

“The constellation.”

“It was one of the few that I’d always see in the sky. I liked that, knowing that something was always there. Knowing that something would always be together.”

Regina felt tears prick her eyes. The constellations were another reminder of what she had taken from Emma, how much Emma had lost—because of her. “How could you stand it?”

Emma turned to her, confusion on her face. “Stand what?”

“Being with me. Falling in love with me. Letting me into your heart like this.”

She turned on her side, and smiled at Regina. “True love can overcome anything. I know you’ve made your mistakes, and I’ve made mine, but we’re both working our way through it.”

“I don’t think any of my mistakes can be forgiven.”

“It will take a long time, but someday, everything will be fine.” Emma said, and kissed her. As she pulled back, she cradled Regina’s cheek in her hand. “I don’t care how long it takes. I’ll be here.”

“You’ll be waiting a long time.”

There was that thoughtful look again, and Emma shook her head. “No, I don’t think so.”

“What makes you certain?”

“I can tell when someone’s on my side. Instinct. And you are definitely on my side now,” Emma raised her eyebrows, and gave her a determined look. “We’ll fight him, together. And we’ll win. Okay?”

Regina only nodded and kissed a spot on her shoulder.

Emma wrapped her other arm around her waist, her mouth near an ear. “Hey. I love you.”

Regina’s heart skipped at the words. _I love you._ It felt like another lifetime when she last heard them, and when she first heard them from Emma. She prayed that she would always hear those words from her, that she would always believe in Regina, far more than she herself ever did. She breathed in deeply before looking into Emma’s eyes. So bright. So full of hope.

Like a star. “I love you too, dear.”

Emma smiled brightly at her. “Have you ever made a wish on a falling star?”

“I haven’t seen enough falling stars, I’m afraid. Before Daniel, I hardly ever went outdoors, only to ride and to pick apples. And when I learned how to do—” Regina paused, looking at her hands. Emma regarded her, waiting for her to continue. “—Magic, it seemed pointless. If there was anything I wanted, I could just conjure it.”

“But if you saw one, what would you have wished for?”

She considered the question. “Now?”

“Yeah.”

She glanced at Emma before she looked back up at the stars. “A peaceful life with you and Henry.”

Emma chuckled lightly. “Funny, turns out we would be wishing for the same thing.”

She sat up, and Regina did the same. She unclasped her necklace and removed the ring. Regina’s eyes were wide and searching, trying to understand her meaning. She slipped the ring in Regina’s fingers, and squeezed her hand. “I promise to protect you, no matter what the cost. I want you to know that I would die for you.”

“Don’t,” Regina said, brushing her thumb on her lips. Her thumb trembled slightly, and Emma kissed it. “Don’t die for me. Please. Live. Then, you can make good on that wish.”

“I will,” Emma nodded and reached for her. The two of them kissed once more. When they broke off, she felt her eyes well with tears. “Once—once everything is okay, I will marry you. We’ll be a family. And if you wanted another, or two more, or three, we’ll make it happen.”

“I don’t know about a gaggle of children,” Regina said, smiling through her tears. “But I would be honored. I would want nothing more.”

She wrapped an arm around Regina, as the brunette wrapped an arm around her waist. “When all of this is over, we could go somewhere, far, far away from here. Like a log cabin. We’ll just enjoy the sights. I can show Henry some constellations, and maybe you can teach both of us how to ride. It’ll just be the three of us.”

Regina nodded, seeing the scene in her eyes. The two of them splashing around on a lake, Henry doing well on his first ride. Emma sitting by the edge of a river, fishing. “I’d like that.”

“So would I.” She stood up, and pulled Regina up to her. “But first, make me a promise.”

“What do you want me to promise you?”

She reached for Regina’s hand and held it over her heart. “Promise me you’ll hang on, that you’ll live. That you’ll fight for it as much as I will, because you are worth it. Our future is worth it.”

“I will. I promise.”

“Let’s seal that deal,” Emma said, and leaned down to kiss her. When they both opened their eyes, she saw the light. She made a silent wish, and held Regina close. “Now, my lady, would you do me the honor of a dance?”

Regina raised an eyebrow. “Where’s the music?”

She fished her phone out from her pocket and waved it at Regina. “Got that covered.”

She pressed play, and the familiar sounds of the Beach Boys floated in the air. Regina raised an eyebrow at her, before shaking her head, and doing a curtsy. She bowed before Regina, and held up her hand, as if for a waltz. Regina’s hand settled in hers, with the other hand on the small of her back. The two of them smiled and embraced each other, swaying to the song cheek to cheek.

“I don’t know why but I keep thinking that something’s bound to go wrong,” Regina sang softly, as Emma’s eyes widened in surprise. Regina pulled back a bit to smile at her and continued, “But she looks in my eyes, and makes me realize and she says--”

“Don’t worry, baby,” Emma sang along, wrapping her arms around Regina once more. “Don’t worry, baby. Everything will turn out fine.”

Regina hummed along as they continued to sway.

She picks it up a few verses afterward. “She makes me come alive, and she makes wanna drive, but she says, don’t worry, baby. Don’t worry, baby. Everything will turn out fine.”

“Everything will turn out fine,” Regina echoes. After a while, she whispers to Emma, “Here’s my favorite part.”

Emma pulls back a bit. “You like this song?”

Regina smiles knowingly, and sings. “She told me baby when you race today, just take along my love with you. And if you know how much I loved you, baby nothing could go wrong with you.”

“Here’s mine.” Emma winks at her, and Regina shakes her head. “Oh what she does to me, when she makes love to me…”

They continue dancing as the song ends, holding each other close.

 

She hears the music before she sees Emma’s bug.

When David says, “There she is,” she turns to look for the source of the sound and as the crawls near the bug, she finds her daughter dancing with Regina. The former mayor’s turtleneck is dirty, and there might actually be a splinter in her hair. She can’t see Emma’s face from here, but they’re closer than friends should be, and she closes her eyes when Emma kisses the side of her forehead. David squeezes her arm, and he turns off the ignition a few meters away from Emma’s car. They get out of the car as quietly as they could, flashlight in hand.

She runs up with the flashlight, David in tow, shining it on the couple.

 

Emma faintly hears the car stopping and she wraps her arms around Regina tightly, and kisses her on the side of her forehead. They continue to sway, imagining all the songs they can dance to, as Emma held off the inevitable confrontation, until Snow shined her flashlight on both of them. She has to raise a hand to cover her eyes, and Regina turns around to see her mother. When Emma turns to her, to offer words of reassurance, to protect her, there is a flicker of amusement in Regina’s eyes that makes her eyebrows furrow in confusion.

“Unfortunately, this wouldn’t be the first time your mother has interrupted me.” Regina says, wryly.

She and David both turn to Snow, who looks like she’s about to put an arrow through Regina.

“This is where you’ve been?” David asks, and she sees her confusion mirrored on his face.

“What are you doing, Emma?” Snow demands.

“I don’t expect you to understand, but I love her.” She replies, and she feels Regina’s fingers lace with hers, a silent show of support. “I’ve been meaning to tell you, but with everything that’s been going on, there never seemed to be a right time.”

“How long has this been going on?”

“Snow.”   

“It’s a fair question,” Emma says, waving off David’s concern with her hand. “It hasn’t been that long.”

“The mine. It’s been that long.” Regina adds.

“That’s at least six months!”

“For me,” Regina replies, and Emma turns to her, surprised. “It’s been that long, for me.”

“And you expect me to let you just carry on with my daughter?” Snow asks, and she shoves her flashlight to David, who takes it with a small ‘oof’. She walks up to both of them, and her lips curl with resentment when she looks at Regina. “You expect me to take all of this at face value, without any agenda.”

“I don’t need to justify myself to you, or to anyone in this town,” Regina says, with a slight sneer. “As for my agenda, my agenda is to defeat Rumplestiltskin, marry Emma, and raise Henry with her for the rest of my life.”

The two of them stare daggers at each other, before David walks up, removing a ring on his finger. He hands it to her and she looks at it. “It was my mother’s,” David explains, as she turns it over. “She said that it would help me find my true love. If Regina is yours, Emma, it will glow instantly.”

He then turns to Snow and smiles slightly. “It was how I found you.”

Against her will, Snow returns his smile. She nods at Emma and gestures for her to wear it. When she does, they all wait with bated breath.

It glows immediately, and she could almost hear the upturn of Regina’s lips.

“So, I was right, huh.” Emma huffs, and she nudges Regina playfully. “You are my true love.”

“But I thought Daniel was your true love.” Snow says to Regina. “Wasn’t he?”

“I thought he was,” Regina replies, softly. “I thought I would never be able to love again.”

David’s eyes widen, and when he turns to Regina, his eyes have turned solemn. “Till Emma.”

Regina nods. “Till Emma.”

She takes off the ring, and returns it to David, who slips it back to his finger with a smile. “I love her, very much. I’ve made a promise to her, and I will marry her, once everything is back in order.”

Snow looks at her in disbelief. “You’re serious.”

She nods solemnly at her mother. “I am.”

“And you’ll raise Henry. Together.”

“That’s the plan.”

When she looks at her father, it seems as if he has made up his mind. “Let’s get you two home, then.”

“David?”

“I know it’s a lot to take in, Snow, I understand.” David replies. “But it’s late, and we promised Henry that we wouldn’t be long, and that we would return once we found her. I don’t want to stay a minute more, and find him lurking around a corner. We can talk about this in the morning.”

“In the morning,” Regina clarifies. “You expect me to stay?”

“What better way to explain than to talk about this over coffee and bacon?” David says, smiling helpfully. Emma wants nothing more than to launch herself into his arms at that very moment, to thank him for being the generous man that he is, for being the father that he is, which is exactly what she does. He spins her around and she smiles once he puts her down. “A good night’s sleep and coffee would do all of us good, I believe. Snow?”

“We will talk about this in the morning,” She says, just adding a little bite. “Now, we have to go. You two have a son to tuck in, and Red still has to go home to Granny.”

The two of them nod. David helps Emma collect the blanket and the lantern, before the four of them make their way over to their cars. Emma hands over the blanket to David, and shakes her head when she sees the squad car. “You two are unbelievable. You took the squad car?”

“I’m the Deputy,” David replies, with just a tinge of pride. “Why wouldn’t I take the car?”

“You do know that’s just for business, right? Not personal?”

“It’s my business to personally make sure that you’re safe.” David says, and Regina shakes her head at his cheekiness. On that front, they can agree. He sees the smile on Regina’s lips, and he walks up to her, as Snow gets into the car. “Between you and me, I think I’ll come to the conclusion that you’re alright. But there’s due process to consider, and there’s her.”

“I understand,” Regina nods, and clasps his hand. “I intend to discuss this openly and properly. In the same way I’m sure you’ll understand that we’ll have to talk to Henry first, David.”

“Of course. I’ll see you at the apartment in a bit, dear,” He replies, kissing Emma on the forehead. “You too, Regina.”

She waves him off as Regina nods. Once he has started the car, the two of them get into the bug.

 

Red smiles at them knowingly when she sees their joined hands. David motions both of them to head upstairs, and to let them explain to Red on her behalf. Emma is sure that whatever they tell her will reach the town by tomorrow morning at the latest. She doesn’t know how to deal with the fact that eventually, Rumplestiltskin will know about this sensitive piece of information, and that worries her, but tonight, she has a whole town of people ready to help her, so she can deal with that tomorrow.

As she guides Regina up the steps she could hear Red’s hushed “How long has this been going on?” behind her, and she couldn’t help but chuckle as Snow shushes her and details what she knows of the two of them so far. She walks Regina to his room and knocks on the door.

“Henry, it’s me,” Emma calls out. “I’m coming in, okay?”

“Okay.”

When she opens the door, he sits up on his bed, and he smiles brightly at both of them, especially at Regina, who he hasn’t seen in a while. “Hey, mom.”

Regina beams at him, and the two of them walk to his bed, sitting on one side. She then brushes a thumb on his cheek. “Hello, dear. You’re still up, I see.”

“I’m just reading stories.”

“You want to tell us how that one ends?” Emma asks, nodding at his book.

Henry shrugs and frowns adorably as he thinks about this book. “I don’t know, it’s more of a Choose Your Own Adventure sort of thing. How about you and mom pick the ending?”

Regina turns to her, cocking her head slightly. “Well, Emma, how do you think this one would end?”

“Happily ever after. Definitely.” She says, and the two of them smile at her answer. “Now, it’s off to bed with you. You’ve got a full day on your hands tomorrow.”

Regina smoothed his hair and kissed him on the forehead, as Henry wrapped his arms around her neck and kissed her on the cheek. “I love you, Henry. Sweet dreams.”

“I love you, mom.”

She ruffled his hair a bit and kissed him on the forehead, before tucking him in. Henry was looking at her expectantly, and she realized it was one of the few times that she’d tucked him in recently. She rubbed his shoulder softly, and smiled at him. “Good night, kid. I love you.”

“Love you too, Emma.”

She leaned in and whispered, “Can you keep a secret?”

Henry looked at Regina, before looking back at her with a knowing grin. “I think I know.”

“You okay with it?”

“Yeah. Will Mom sleep over tonight?”

“I think she might.”

“Okay,” Henry whispered, and turned to Regina. “I’ll see you in the morning, mom. You too, Emma.”

“Good night, kid.”

They turned off the lights and headed for Emma’s room, hand in hand. Henry turned on his side and clutched his pillow. It was going to be the best sleep he would have in a while.

**Author's Note:**

> I couldn’t put it in the summary unless I wanted to give it away but, this was inspired by Imagine Your OTP’s entry: “Imagine your OTP goofing around in a children’s playground like five-year-olds,” and the playground Regina built for Henry in “Fruit of the Poisonous Tree”.


End file.
